Regine Tamba Richards
“The strongest man in the world is he who stands alone,” said Hendrik Ibsen, known as the “father of modern drama,” and author of the play, An Enemy of the People, that will open under the direction of Valorie Grear, on the main stage of the Performing Arts Building on Oct. 28, at 8 p.m.
Dr. Thomas Stockman, who is
the main character and interpreted by actor Doug Eldred, stands alone against his town when he discovers that the public baths where he lives, and on which the prosperity of his town depends, have dangerously contaminated waters.
When he refuses to be silenced, Stockman is declared “an enemy of the people” for wanting the truth to be known and actions taken to solve the issue.
Ibsen, one of the foremost dramatists of the 19th century, was in constant conflict with the society of his time.
While An Enemy of the People was originally written by Ibsen and set in
1882 in a southern coastal town of Norway, Valorie Grear, professor of theatre arts and director of the play, chose Christopher Hampton’s translation.
Although Grear is staging the play in its original 1882 Norwegian setting, the theme is strikingly up-to-date.
Asides from being a relevant theme to our society, Grear’s goal is “to expose our students to some of the great classic pieces.”
“I try to do a wide range of plays,” Grear said.
Grear, who has a master of fine arts in theater from Cornell University and who has directed 20 plays at Pierce since 1989, says, “The message is whatever each audience member takes from it,” but ultimately it’s about “the courage to stand alone.”
“I’m not interested in plays that just entertain,” said Grear but ones that examine “my values, my ethics” and “shine a light.”
An Enemy of the People, first staged in 1883, is one of the most frequently performed plays by Ibsen and is usually staged in a box set, but Grear, chose to stage it on a basic platform with the projection of environmental issues in the back on two window panes.
“I hope it will bring a fresh look to the play,” Grear said.
While in general the students and actors are theater majors, Grear said that many talented ones are not necessarily acting majors or no longer at Pierce, and the 11 primary characters of the play, along with the ensemble of six to eight townspeople, reflect a diverse cast of actors.
“My character is kind of a whistle blower,” said Eldred adding that “An Enemy of the People” was one of the first plays he read as a student.
Eldred has performed several shows at Pierce, including “Peter Pan”, where he was Captain Hook, and “The Three Sisters”, by Anton Chekhov, directed by Grear, in which he played Andre, the three sisters’ brother.
Eilif and Morten are Stockman’s two young sons, but for casting considerations, one of the children was changed to a daughter, Ellie.
Morten, played by Raffi Safarian, is a 16-year-old junior high school student. He is taking a math class at Pierce and would like to transfer here before hopefully going to UCLA as a biology major. Although he wants to become a pediatrician, Safarian enjoys the theater and is looking for agent representation.
“I appreciate my role,” even though it’s a small part, said Safarian.
Billy Portman, who plays Mayor Peter Stockman, a conservative politician and the doctor’s brother, is also his adversary. While Thomas Stockman is motivated by moral conscience, his brother, the mayor, is motivated by greed. Although “An Enemy of the People” is Portman’s first show at Pierce, he has worked as a comedian for 10 years.
His real-life daughter, 10-year-old aspiring actress Ava, plays Dr. Stockman’s daughter, Ellie.
Robert Griffins, described his character, 50-to 60-year-old Morten Kiil as “the bad guy.”
Griffins and his character are similar in age, which helped him get the part of the man responsible for polluting the waters in the spa and then hoping to save face by trying to bribe and threaten his son in law, Dr. Stockman.
Hampton, who became the youngest writer ever to have a play performed in the London’s West End in 1966, wrote plays for the theater throughout the ’70s.
He also translated several foreign plays including “A Doll’s House,” also by Ibsen.
Hampton also adapted novels for the theater such as “Les Liaisons Dangereuses,” by Choderlos de Laclos, and wrote television screenplays as well as screenplay adaptations such as Mary Reilly.
The play will run Oct. 29, Nov. 4 and 5 at 8 p.m., Oct. 30 and Nov. 6 at 2 p.m. and Nov. 3 at 7:30 p.m.